After suffering a 6-1 beatdown at the hands of the Colorado Avalanche at home on Tuesday night, the Buffalo Sabres looked to bring some life into the KeyBank Center on Thursday against the lowly Detroit Red Wings, who had mustered only 12 wins and 28 points on the year to date.
If there was any semblance of life on the ice during the game, though, it came from the players wearing red with the winged wheel on their chest.
Detroit scored relatively early in the game, thanks to a goal from their top forward, Dylan Larkin. Larkin would score again with just 0.02 seconds left in the first period, capitalizing on a two-on-one opportunity at the end of the frame.
The game would remain 2-0 Detroit until the 3rd period when the Sabres overcame two deficits to tie it up and send it to overtime. Their goals came courtesy of Jimmy Vesey, Scott Wilson, and Evan Rodrigues. The other Red Wing to score was Tyler Bertuzzi, who notched a goal on the power play.
Buffalo would go on to lose in a shootout, 4-3.
Jonas Johansson, in his first career NHL start, made 18 saves on 21 shots for a .857 SV%.
The Sabres finally got their depth scoring, as someone bearing a name other than Jack Eichel was able to get their name on the scoresheet. It didn’t matter in the end, though, because they still managed to surrender a point that should have been theirs for the taking.
The most frustrating part of the game is that the Sabres somehow found a way to make the Detroit Red Wings, yes, those Detroit Red Wings, look like a good hockey team. This is a Detroit squad that is headed toward one of the worst seasons since the 48 point Avalanche of a few years ago.
The Sabres have some real soul searching to do ahead of their game against the New York Rangers at Madison Square Garden tonight, and albeit playing for the slimmest of chances of a playoff berth, have their dignity to protect and their jobs on the line.